1. Field
The present disclosure is directed to an apparatus for the disinfection of medical instruments, particularly the disinfection of blood glucose meters, utilizing ultraviolet Wavelength (UV) light.
2. Background
Blood glucose meters (BGMs) have been widely used since the 1980s for determining the approximate concentration of glucose in the blood. Medical personnel often share glucometers to test the blood glucose level of multiple patients.
The use of glucometers with multiple patients has caused cross-contamination concerns. The transmittal of dangerous bacteria, viruses and funguses can have very serious consequences for patients and medical personnel, for example the transmittal of Hepatitis and HIV viruses can cause death.
In early 2014 the FDA issued guideline documents to address this cross-contamination problem. Most BGM manufacturers have incorporated into their Instructions for Use (IFU) procedures related to cleaning and disinfecting the BGMs, and specific cleaning and disinfecting agents for which the effectiveness of the procedures has been validated.
Cleaning agents typically contain fairly aggressive chemical compounds (bleach, oxygen peroxide, ammonium chloride salts among others) and they can have adverse effects on the BGM housing and labeling. Additionally, the cleaning solution can penetrate the BGM (for example via the strip port) and cause internal corrosion of the BGM's electronics which could lead to faulty or defective devices. Further, the cleaning and disinfection of BGMs is also difficult, time consuming and entirely operator-dependent.
It would be advantageous to have an effective system for supplementing the cleaning and disinfection of BGMs that can minimize cross-contamination problems, improve disinfection efficiency, success rate, safety and consistency while not requiring additional human intervention. It would be further advantageous if the cleaning and disinfection of BGMs is less difficult, time consuming and not entirely operator-dependent.